Assembling apparatus.



PATENTED JULY 17, 1906.

vNo. 826,179.

N. MARSHALL.

ASSEMBLING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.15. 1903.

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N. MARSHALL.

ASSEMBLING APPARATUS. APPLICATION F1LBD'APR.15,1903.

PATENTED JULY 1'7, 1906.

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UNrr-nn sfrArns PATENT OFFICE.

ASSEIVIBLING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 17, 1906.

Application iiled April l5,I 1903. Serial No. 152,713.

To ci/ZZ whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, NORMAN MARSHALL, of Newton, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Assembling Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to apparatus for assembling the parts of lamp-sockets, rosettes, cut-outs, or other articles in which the various parts are assembled by bringing them into proper relation and securing the parts together by screws.

The object of the invention is to provide an apparatus by the use of which the parts of the article may be assembled more conveniently and quicklythan heretofore, thereby effecting a saving in the cost of manufacture. This is accomplished by employing a series' of jigs for supporting the parts to be assembled in the proper relation and bringing the jigs successively into position for the screws to be operated upon by a mechanism which drives the screws, and thus secures the parts together.

The form and construction of the individual jigs will depend upon the shape and character of the parts to be assembled. The construction of the screw-driving mechanism or of the means for bringing the jigs successively into position may also be varied to suit the articles or the conditions under which the assembling is to be done.

The various features of the invention will be best understood from a description of devices embodying the features of the invention, and in the accompanying drawings I have shown several constructions of assembling apparatus which embody some or all of the features of the invention. v

In the drawings, Figure l is a sectional plan view of an apparatus embodying the invention, taken on line l 1, Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is an elevation showing the carrier of an apparatus provided with jigs of a different form. Fig. 4 is a sectional detail view of one of the jigs shown in Fig. 3, the section being taken on the line 4 4, Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a plan view-of the jig shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a sectional view oi' the form of' jig shown in Figs. l and 2 and showing parts of the article carried by the jig after they have been assembled, the section of the article being taken on line 6 6, Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a plan view of the article shown in Fig. 6. Fig. 8 is a sectional detail of the screw-driving mechanism shown in Figs. l and 2. Fig. 9 is a partial elevation showing a modified form of screw-driving mechanism and a modification of the jig shown in Figs. 3' and 4. Fig. l0 is a plan view of the carrier and jigs shown in Fig. 9. Fig. 11 is an elevation showing a modiiied form of screw-driving mechanism.

In the apparatus shown in Figs. l and 2 the screw-driving mechanism comprises a spindle A, in which the screw-driver proper, A', is carried, the spindle being connected by a universal joint (1,2 with one member of a telescoping shaft A3, the other member of which is connected, by means of a universal joint A4, with a shaft A5, mounted in the bracket B. The members of the telescoping shaft are connected, so as to rotate together, by means of a pin-and-slot connection, and they are held, normally with the spindle raised, by means of a spring A6. (Indicated in Fig. 2.) The spindle A is rotated by means of a belt passing over a pulley frictionally mounted on the shaft A5, so that said pulley will slip on the shaft after the screw has been driven home.. The handle A7 surrounds the spindle A, and by grasping this handle the spindle may be moved to engage the screw-driverwith the head of the screw to be driven. For the purpose of facilitating the engagement of the screw-driver with the head of the screw and also for retaining the screw-driver in engagement with the head of the screw a sleeve A8 is yieldingly mounted upon the spindle A, and its lower end surrounds the screw-driver A and projects beyond the end thereof. The sleeve is held yieldingly in its normal position by means of a spring A9, which allows the sleeve to yield after it engages the head of the screw, so that the screw-driver engages the slot in the head of the screw. In this form of apparatus the jigs O are of a construction to support the parts of a rosette, such as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. The jig is accordingly provided with recesses for receiving the line-wire contacts d and with recesses for receiving the fuse-contacts d2. The means for bringing the jigs successively into position for the operation of the screw-driving mechanism 1n this construction consists of a table E, mount- IOO ed for rotation upon a standard E. The screw-driving mechanism is arranged above the table near its outer edge, and the jigs C are arranged about the outer edge of the table, so that as the table is moved the jigs are successively brought into position under the screw-driving mechanism. In using this 4apparatus the contacts d and d2 are placed in the recesses C C2, and the porcelain D of the rosette is placed in position on the jig, the screws d having been placed in the proper holes in the porcelain. As the jigs carrying the parts thus placed in proper position are brought into position under the screw-driving mechanism the operator engages the screw-driver with the heads of the screws, and by the rotation of the screw-driver the screws are driven home and the parts secured together. The Yflexible connections between the spindle A and the shaft A5 allows the screw-driver to be moved from one screw to the other, and by reason ofthe telescoping shaft A3 the spindle A may be moved vertically as required.

In assembling articles such as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, in which the heads of the screws are located in recesses in the base D, the yielding sleeve A8 maybe dispensed with, since the screw-driver will be coniined by the walls of the recesses in which the head of the screw is located.

In the construction vshown in Figs. 3, 4, and 5 the jig shown is of a construction suitable for use in attaching the metallic socket to the porcelain base of an incandescent-electric-lamp socket, such as shown in Fig. 4. This jig is provided with a support F, mounted upon a spring F the upward movement of the support being limited by the head of a bolt F", screwed into the support and arranged to engage the under side of the table E. Two studs F2 project from the top oi' the support Fand are so arranged that they will engage grooves in the side of theporcelain base S and hold it in proper position upon the jig. The support F is also provided with recesses F3 Jfor receiving the nuts s, which act in connection with the screws s to hold the metallic socket S and the porcelain base S together. The bottoms of these recesses F3 are formed by the tops of posts F4, which are secured in the table E, so that they do not move with the support F when it is pressed downward against the tension of the spring F. In assembling the parts of the lampsocket the nuts s are placed in the recesses F3 and the porcelain base S is placed in position on the jig, the metallic socket S having been placed on the baseS and the screws s dropped into the holes in the base. With the parts in this condition the jig is brought into position under the screw-driving mechanism and the screw-driver brought into engagement with the head of one of the screws s. The sleeve A8 iits over the end of the screw, thus centering 'the screw-driver, so that it may readily be engaged with the slot in the screw-head and be retained in proper position. Since the heads of the screws s are near the vertical walls of the metallic shell S the screw-driver must be at an inclination to the screw s, and the screw-driver may be held in this relation, as indicated in Fig. 4, by reasonof the flexible connection between the spindle A and the shaft A5. As the screw s is screwed into the nut s the support F yields to allow the downward movement ofthe base S and the post F4 continues in engagement with the nut and insures its proper movement into the recesses provided for it in the base S, as indicated in Fig. 4.

In the apparatus shown in Fig. 9 another form of screw-driving mechanism is illustrated and a modiiied form of the jig shown in Figs. 3 and 4 is also illustrated. In this apparatus the screw-driving spindle A has merely a vertical movement and is operated to carry it into engagement with the screws to be driven by means of an operating-lever A1", connected by a pin-and-slot connection with a collar A11, loosely mounted on the spindle A. In this construction the parts of the jig which carry the base S and nuts s instead'of being secured directly upon the table E are carried upon a pivoted carrier F5,which has a limited tilting movement laterally in either direction, so that the vertically-moving screw-driver carried by the spindle A may-be brought into engagement with the heads of the screws s', as indicated in Fig. 9. In this case the spring F is interposed between the carrier F5 and the support F, and the posts F4 are secured in the carrier F5. In addition to the tilting movement of the carrier F5 it may also have a limited movement on its pivots radially of the table E, as indicated at the right in Fig. 10, so that the heads of the screws s may be brought into accurate register with the screw-driving mechanism in case they are not brought into accurate register by the movement of the table E. The mode oi operation in assembling the parts is substantially the same with this construction as with the construction indicated in Figs. 8 and 4 with the exception that in this construction the jig is tilted or brought into an inclined position instead of bringinr the screw-driving mechanism into an incrlined position.

In assembling articles-such, for instance, as shown in Figs. 6 and 7,-in which there are a number of screws to be driven and in which no tilting ofl the screw-driving mechanism or of the jig is required the screw-driving mechanism may be provided with a screw-driver Jfor engagingeach screw, and this gang of screw-drivers may be operated simultaneously. Such a construction is indicated in IOO IIO

Fig. 11, in which there are four rotary spindles A, carrying screw-drivers and so arranged that the screw-drivers will be brought into engagement with the four screws d by a vertical movement of the head carrying the screw-driving spindles. It will be understood that these spindles are independently and frictionally driven, so that each. spindle may cease to rotate when the screw upon which it is operating has been driven home. It is desirable to use a plurality of screwdriving spindles where the character of the article the parts of which are being assembled admits of such form of screw-driving mechanism, as the rapidity of the assembling lis thereby materially increased.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. An assembling apparatus having in combination a screw-driving mechanism, a series of jigs, two sets of positioning and holding devices on each jig constructed and arranged to engage two parts to be assembled and hold them with their screw-holes in alinement, and supporting means for the jigs whereby they may be brought successively into position for the operation of the screwdriving mechanism, substantially as described.

2. An assembling apparatus having in combination a screw-driving mechanism, a jig, engaging devices on the jig for retaining one of the parts to be assembled in position, additional engaging devices on the jig for retaining a second part to be assembled in definite relation to the first part, and means whereby the jig may be moved into and out of position for the operation of the screwdriving mechanism, substantially as described.

3. An assembling apparatus having in combination a screw-driving mechanism, a rotatable table mounted under the screw-driving mechanism, a series vof jigs arranged upon the table in position to be brought successively under the screw-driving mechanism by the rotation of the table, engaging devices on each jig arranged to hold a part to be assembled in position, and additional engaging devices on each jig arranged to hold a second part to be assembled in definite relation to the first part, substantially as described.

4. An assembling apparatus having in combination a screw-driving mechanism, a yielding support for the part through which the screw passes, and a relatively stationary support for the part into which the screw is riven for supporting said 'part as the yielding support moves relatively thereto during the driving of the screw, substantially as described.

5. A jig for an assembling apparatus comprising a yielding support having one or vmore recesses for receiving internally-screwthreaded parts, and a relatively stationary support forming the bottom of each recess for supporting the screw-threaded part as the yielding support moves relatively thereto, substantially as described.

6. A jig for an assembling apparatus comprising a `yielding-support having one or more recesses for receiving nuts, and a fixed support forming the bottom of each recess, substantially as described.

7. A jig for an assembling apparatus comprising a support mounted upon a spring and having one or more recesses for receiving nuts, a post forming the bottom of each recess which does not move with the support when forced against the spring, substantially as described.

8. A jig for an assembling apparatus comprising a support F having recesses F3, a spring F for sustaining said support F, posts F4 extending into said recesses, and Xed in the carrier for the support F, substantially as described.

9. A jig for an assembling apparatus comprising a yielding support having one or more recesses for receiving nuts, and a tilting carrier on which said support is mounted, substantially as described.

10. A jig for an assembling apparatus comprising a yielding support having one or more recesses for receiving screws, a tilting carrier on which said support is yieldingly mounted, and one or more posts secured to said carrier and forming the bottoms of said recesses, substantially as described.

11. A jig for an assembling apparatus consisting of a yielding support adapted to carry one of the parts of the article to be assembled and provided with means for holding said part, and a relatively stationary su port for holding one of the other parts of tliie article to be assembled, for the purpose set forth.

12. lA jig for an assembling apparatus comprising a carrier, a yielding support thereon normally pressed upward, means for limiting the upward movement of said support, and a relatively stationary support carried by the carrier, for the purpose set forth.

1 3. An assembling-machine having in combination, a screw-driving mechanism, a series of jigs, and a carrier for the jigs by the movement of which the jigs may be successively brought into position for the operation of the screw-driving mechanism, each of said jigs consisting of a base adapted to receive and support on its upper face the upper part of the article to be assembled and having recesses in said upper face for the reception of the underneath parts of the article to be assembled, said underneath parts being prevented from turning by the walls of the re-` cesses when the screws are inserted.

14. In an assembling apparatus, the com- IOO bin-ation of a carrier and a jig thereon for the ventedfroin turning by the Walls of the reparts of the article to be asse1nbled, said jio eesses When the screws are inserted. Io consisting of a base adapted tov receive and I Intestimony whereof I have afxed my supporton its upper 'face the upper part of signature in presence oi" two Witnesses.

the article to be assembled and having re- NORMAN MARSHALL. oesses in said upper face for the reception of Witnesses: the underneath parts of the article to be asl FRANCES L. WOOD,

sembled, said underneath parts being pre- E. M., CARPENTER. 

